Who Should I Start? Joe Mixon or Jacory Croskey-Merritt

Monday, November 10, 6:18 PM

Houston Texans running back Joe Mixon (ankle, foot) hasn't been able to do anything for the last four months with what the team is calling a foot injury, and there have been no recent updates on what his timetable might look like for a return this year. It has opened up speculation that Mixon won't return at all for Houston in 2025. He was placed on the Non-Football Injury list in the offseason, and the Texans have offered few details on his foot injury. General manager Nick Caserio said in early October that Mixon was making progress, but the fact that we haven't heard anything since isn't good news. The Texans are still holding out hope that Mixon will be back this year, but KPRC 2 Sports' Aaron Wilson has said that Mixon's situation is "tough" and "complicated." Fantasy managers shouldn't be so hopeful he'll play in 2025. In the meantime, the Texans will roll on with veteran Nick Chubb in the early down role, with rookie Woody Marks seeing passing-down work.

Friday, November 14, 8:02 PM

Washington Commanders rookie running back Jacory Croskey-Merritt has lost hold of the lead-back duties with Chris Rodriguez Jr. taking over in Week 10 against the Lions. Croskey-Merrit wound up leading Washington with 11 carries for 30 yards in the game, but that was due to Rodriguez leaving the game early with a shoulder injury. Rodriguez played 68% of the snaps to Croskey-Merritt's 16% in the first half and is off the injury report heading into Sunday. The past five games have been disappointing for the rookie seventh-rounder and ultimately led to the coaching staff going in a different direction with Rodriguez, who has done a better job of taking what is blocked. Croskey-Merritt should still be involved on some early downs, but he's best left on the bench for Washington's Week 11 matchup against the Miami Dolphins in Madrid, Spain.